To Be Noticed
by Neoaddict
Summary: A little Kacheek sits in her favorite spot in the woods. Will her deepest wish be heard by anybody?


Kelsie the Kacheek lay on a rock, staring up at the trees. This was her favorite place in all of Neopia. Especially at this time of day, when the sun was high in the sky and poking through the branches, casting golden rays down on her. She could stay like this for hours, barely even moving, entertaining herself with her own imagination. Even better, it close to both her house and the Brightvale fruit shop, so she could come every day without ever growing hungry or worrying her owner, Angela.

But Kelsie knew that even if her home had been a thousand miles away, Angela still wouldn't worry. Not because she trusted her pet; because she didn't even notice that she was gone. In fact, one day Kelsie had left in the morning, stayed all day with a book and a fruit basket, and come home after sunset, and her owner hadn't even said a word.

A year ago, when Kelsie was a brand-new pet, it hadn't been like that. Back then, Angela panicked if her beloved Kacheek went out of sight for just a moment. Back then, Kelsie hadn't even known about this special place, because she was always shopping or playing games with her owner. Back then, Angela had saved all her money to buy Kelsie a Speckled Paint Brush, the color of which remained bright and strong on the Kacheek's fur, even though the love that had made it possible had begun to fade.

This was what Kelsie was thinking about as she lie on the rock. How her owner had no love for her anymore, and the one pet that she considered the cause of it.

That pet's name was Brandy, and she was a Baby Uni. Brandy was the cause of all this because after Angela had adopted her, she had stolen all the love away from Kelsie.

For the first few weeks after Brandy came home, Kelsie had tried to deny to herself that Angela paid less attention to her. She attributed her owner's strange behavior to the confusion created by a new pet in the house, and told herself that in a little while everything would get better. But it didn't; it got worse and worse. First Angela's gifts to Kelsie stopped; then the days out in town were replaced by days spent at home playing with Brandy; finally, Angela had even started forgetting to tuck Kelsie in at night periodically. And now, two months after Brandy's adoption, Kelsie was beginning to wonder if she was really painted Invisible, not Speckled.

"There's no use crying over spilled milk," she said aloud. Then she slid off the rock and walked over to the small nearby pool for a drink. She'd picked up some bread for a snack instead of fruit today, and it had left her mouth feeling very dry.

After she'd had a long drink, Kelsie stared at her reflection. The face staring back at her was definitely visible. Sad, yes; but visible. Forgetting about her attempt to forget her problems, she proceeded to study the reflection, searching for answers. She leaned very close to the water, bending down until her nose touched it. "I just wish Angela would notice me again," she said to the water.

"I don't care WHAT your wish is, you're invading my personal space!" said a loud voice from within the pool.

Kelsie screamed and leapt back. Something was floating on top of the water! Wondering what on earth had said that, the Kacheek crept closer. "Who's there?" she asked softly.

The floating thing lifted itself up, rising above the pool. Kelsie could see it clearly now. It was a Ramosan. She was surprised; all her books on Petpets said that they lived on the ocean floor.

"Well, don't you scare easily?" laughed the tiny creature. "I didn't expect something so big and loud to panic at a little noise. And to answer your question, my name is Rhonda. Who're you?"

Kelsie eyed Rhonda warily. But the Ramosan didn't seem dangerous, and she couldn't see the harm in talking a bit. "I'm Kelsie," she answered.

"Now that we're at a comfortable distance," said Rhonda, barely waiting for Kelsie to finish her sentence before talking, "why don't you tell me what you meant by your wish?"

"Oh, I wasn't talking to you, I was just--"

"That's nonsense," replied the rather pushy Petpet. "If you were saying it out loud, you obviously wanted someone to hear it, and since I have, you're stuck."

Kelsie considered for a moment. It was unlikely that anyone else would listen to her troubles. Angela didn't care anymore, and Brandy never had. Here was someone who actually wanted to hear it. At this point, she didn't even care if she sounded stupid, or about anything she'd been taught concerning dealing with your own problems. Taking comfort in her new friend's confident nature, the Kacheek poured out her heart, starting from her earliest memories of Angela and ending with her owner's not taking notice of her absence.

"That's TERRIBLE!" Rhonda exploded when Kelsie was finished. "Nobody has the right to do that to their own pet! Nobody!"

Kelsie attempted to backpedal. She was still loyal to Angela, and wasn't comfortable with anyone badmouthing her. "It's not that bad. I mean, I can still do things by myself."

"No excuses!" the Ramosan said dismissively. "Now listen up. You need help. And I think I'm just the one to give it to you."

"But how?" Kelsie moaned. "What could you do to help if all my efforts failed?"

Rhonda's face lit up with a grin. "I think I've got an idea. How far is your house?"

"Um...about twenty minutes away. Fifteen if I run."

The Petpet nodded, obviously pleased with the information. "Perfect. I should be able to last without water for that long. I want you to carry me there."

And with that, Rhonda leapt into Kelsie's arms.

"So, Rhonda," said Kelsie when they had been walking for about ten minutes, "how did you get to that little pool? Don't Ramosans live under the ocean?"

"A lot less talk and a lot more walk," snapped Rhonda.

"Fine," replied Kelsie, hurt. "Well, anyway, my house is on that hill there." She jabbed her paw at a perfectly round, green hill almost directly in front of them. At its top stood a picturesque white Neohome. Smiling gnomes dotted the front lawn; pretty stain glass adorned all the windows. It was a place that any pet would want to live in. The Kacheek quickly climbed the hill and crossed the yard. Unfortunately, there was an obstacle between them and the door. And its name was Brandy.

"Oh, hello," drawled the Uni. "Back from your secret buisness again, are you?"

"Let me in," said Kelsie tersely.

But Brandy knew that her older sister wouldn't do anything to stop her. "I'll bet you're in the Thieves' Guild," she taunted. "Robbing Neopia blind, one home at a time."

"Brandy, I don't have time for this--"

"Sure you do. It's not like Angela cares where you are."

Up until now Kelsie had tried to act indifferent, but Brandy's last remark got under her skin. Tears sprung to her eyes. Thankfully, Rhonda came to the rescue.

Before the small Uni even knew what hit her, the Ramosan had flown at her, delivering a mild electric shock to the pet's nose. Brandy jumped up, squealing and pawing the ground.

"I'm telling Angela!" she screamed as she pranced away, shaking her stinging nose.

"Why?" Kelsie called after her, emboldened by both her anger and her petpet's actions. "I thought Angela didn't care about anything I did!"

Rhonda grinned at the Speckled Kacheek. "See? That's the spirit. You're learning already."

Inside the house, Kelsie placed Rhonda in the sink. The Ramosan let out a sigh of relief at being back in her natural state. The Kacheek, however, was getting impatient. She was frustrated at still knowing nothing about this mysterious Petpet, her motivations, or what she planned to do.

"Okay. I did everything you asked. Now will you please answer some of my questions?"

Rhonda looked uncomfortable and didn't speak.

Kelsie put her paw on the faucet. "Start talking, or I drain the water," she warned. It was unusual for her to be so assertive, but today was a day full of firsts. One more wouldn't hurt anything.

"All right, all right!" cried the Ramosan, looking shaken for the first time since Kelsie met her. "I was in that pool because...someone dumped me there."

Kelsie cocked her head. "Dumped you? But why?"

"Let's just say that I became a lot less interesting once my owner found a deal on a Moltenore."

Realization hit Kelsie. It answered her questions, but it left her feeling terrible at the same time. So many owners, forgetting the old the second something new came along. When would it ever end?

"I'm sorry for pushing you, I didn't know, you must feel--" Kelsie stammered for the right words.

"Look," said Rhonda, once again acting totally dismissive, "that's all in the past. What matters now is your owner."

The Kacheek nodded. "Alright. I'm not going to question you. Whatever you want me to do, just say the word."

First, the Ramosan glanced at the door to make sure no one, namely a certain Uni, was listening. Then she returned her gaze to Kelsie, her face determined but a bit nervous. "Well, this might sound crazy, but I want you to rinse me down this drain."

"That's--" Kelsie began to protest, but bit her tongue. She had just promised not to question Rhonda. And breaking her word was one "first" that was not going to happen today. Instead, she nodded. "That's fine. Anything else?"

"Not much. Just make sure to be extra nice to Angela for the next few days, OK?"

"Um...all right..." Questions swirled in Kelsie's head, but they were overriden by a strong feeling of trust. Somehow, their shared fate bonded the pet and Petpet, even though they had only just met.

Not another word needed to be said. Rhonda looked at Kelsie expectantly; the Speckled pet nodded, and pulled out the drain plug. As the Ramosan swirled downward, she winked up at Kelsie. And then she was gone, leaving only the opposing forces of confusion and trust behind her.

A few days later, Kelsie lie on her bed. It wasn't the same as her favorite spot in the woods of Meridell, but she hadn't been there since the day she met Rhonda. She had stayed at home the whole time, hoping that her only friend would pop up in her sink, smiling that confident smile.

She had kept the Ramosan's last words in mind, and been very nice to her owner. But if anything, Angela seemed even more distracted lately. The Kacheek was beginning to wonder if her trust in Rhonda had been well placed.

To add to that, she also felt regretful. If only she hadn't rinsed Rhonda down the sink, she could have persuaded the Petpet to stay. They might have become best friends, living and playing together like any other pet and Petpet.

None of that mattered now, though. Rhonda was gone, and Kelsie could only hope that her plan, whatever it was, worked out.

"I might as well get out of the house," she told herself. "I'm just wasting my time here."

The Kacheek slid off her bed and headed for the door, but before she could open it, a knock came from the other side. Kelsie was shocked at first; it had been a while since anyone had wanted to talk with her. Then she recovered herself.

"Come on in," she called, using a cheerful voice as if people knocked all the time.

The person opened the door. It was Angela. Of course, it wasn't likely to be anyone else; Brandy couldn't knock with her small hooves, and no one else lived in the house. But Kelsie was still surprised that her owner, after ignoring her for so long, was finally ready to talk to her older pet.

"Um, Kelsie?" Angela asked tentatively. "Can we talk?"

On the inside, Kelsie wanted to say, "Of course we can! Do you have any idea how long I've waited for you to say that!?", but instead she just smiled and casually said, "Sure. What about?"

Angela perched on her pet's small bed. "I tried to talk to Brandy about this, but I don't think she really got it. She's a little young, you know?" Kelsie just nodded.

"Well, anyway...this may seem a little weird, but I guess I should just say it. I've been hearing voices."

Kelsie's mouth just hung open for a second. This was not what she had been expecting. She had been expecting Angela to apologize profusely for ignoring her, and then take her out for a smoothie like old times. Now that her owner told her that she was hearing voices, she had no stock response to pull out. So she just stayed silent, searching for words and feeling dumb.

"The weird thing is," Angela continued, either not noticing or choosing not to acknowledge Kelsie's silence, "I only hear them when I'm in the bathroom. Especially near the sink. And they say the same thing over and over. They just say, 'Remember what you've forgotten.' That's it."

Kelsie wasn't the most intelligent pet ever, but she was smart enough to understand what was going on here, and it wasn't that Angela was going crazy. She felt that it was time to finally hash it out with her owner.

"You're not nuts," she said quietly. "I know exactly what's going on. And I think that we both have some explaining to do."

So Kelsie told Angela the whole story. About how she had met Rhonda in the woods, about bringing the Ramosan home, about how all this related to the voice in the sink. When she was done, her owner looked confused.

"But why didn't you just say so?" Angela asked. "The only reason that I left you alone was because I thought you weren't interested in doing things with Brandy and me."

Kelsie opened her mouth to reply, but then realized that she didn't have an answer. Now that she thought about it, Angela's question was one that she needed to ask herself: Why DIDN'T she just tell her owner how she felt?

"I don't know," she said. It was the only honest thing that she could do.

"No, don't feel bad," said Angela, shaking her head. "I shouldn't have expected you to ask me. I should have assumed that you wanted to be included. It's my fault."

Kelsie was glad that Angela realized her mistake, but she also didn't want her to feel bad. "It's nobody's fault," she said decidedly. "It was a bad misunderstanding."

"Right," agreed Angela, obviously pleased with her pet's opinion.

The two smiled at each other for a minute. Then Angela broke the silence.

"So, do you want to come with me and Brandy to the Food Shop tonight? The shopkeeper's been asking where you are."

Kelsie's smile grew bigger. "I'd love to."

A few weeks later, the Kacheek was much happier. It had taken some adjusting, but both she and Brandy had begun to understand that there was room for both of them in Angela's heart. Kelsie still thought that Brandy was a bit spoiled, and Brandy still thought that Kelsie was a bit quiet and strange. With help from Angela, though, the two got along well enough and even played together sometimes.

Most of the time, Angela took both of her pets everywhere with her. But after talking with Kelsie, she also realized that each one needed some time alone with her. So a couple times each week, she would take one of them on a special outing. She was amazed at how well it worked; Brandy loved it when Angela took her out for ice cream, and Kelsie always looked forward to their one-on-one trips to the book store.

One day, exactly a month from the day she met Rhonda, Kelsie was in the bathroom, washing up for dinner. Angela was making her favorite kind of omelette, and she was in a hurry to get ready so that she could dig in. But as she was rinsing her paws, she couldn't help but glance at the drain.

She leaned over further, staring down and remembering how Rhonda had bravely swirled into the unknown, just to help her out. She felt a small twinge of regret that the Ramosan couldn't be here now, to share in her newfound happiness.

The sink, of course, was not the same as the pool in the Meridell forest. But Kelsie spoke to it anyway, hoping that her words might reach her lost friend.

"Thank you, Rhonda. For everything."


End file.
